Tag Archives: Manitoba Government

Around twitter this past week there was some conversation over the fact that new breweries opening here in Manitoba will not be able to list any product which is packaged and sold at Liquor Marts on growler bars at Liquor Marts or Beer Vendors. There was quite a bit of concern raised over this matter and so I figured I’d ask Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries (MBLL) about it.

When the pilot project for growler bars launched, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries had no idea it would be as popular as it was. Luckily this had been taken this into consideration and was part of the reason behind only listing Half Pints and Fort Garry. Should the growler bar prove to be popular, they could easily get access to more beer.

During this pilot they allowed both the core and seasonal beers from Half Pints and Fort Garry to be listed. When the MBLL started making plans for the future of the growler bars they reviewed all the feedback they had received during the pilot run of the growler bars. One thing that I was told they had heard time and time again that people want fresh, unique and interesting beers. If a listed beer did extremely well on the growler bar it is then possible that they may be able to get it listed as a packaged product at the Liquor Marts.

“We have consistently heard from customers that they were looking for fresh, unique and seasonal beers, so this was an opportunity to provide customers with a selection of products that they would not be able to necessarily get in another format.”

In response to this desire, they made a choice to only allow beers not already available in the Liquor Marts to be listed on the growler bar. This would allow for consumers to be able to have access to something that they normally don’t. What I did learn was that this rule only applies to the Liquor Marts and the Beer Vendors and that “brew pubs and microbreweries can sell whatever they want at their own growler stations.” So, those breweries that are opening and will have growler stations will be able to have any of their core brands, core brands of other breweries as well as seasonal beers on their growler stations. To be honest, I believe that once the brew pubs and breweries start opening we will see many more people trying to get it from the source.

The other concern that I know I and others have had is that a number of breweries owned by AB In-Bev have been listed. The MBLL is required under trade agreements to follow a non-discriminatory practice in their listing process. What this means is that if a brewery meets the criteria set the MBLL to fit within the “craft-style beer” category (This includes the type of ingredients used, brewing methods, the use of adjuncts, batch size, etc.) that they are required to consider them for listing, “ownership does not matter.”

“As long as their product meets the criteria, the listing application offers a fair process for all eligible suppliers to compete for participation; ownership does not matter.”

While the growler bars at the Liquor Marts and Beer Vendors have been our only real opportunity to get access to beer in this way, with the coming opening of Peg Beer Co. (Hopefully next week! Please!), Barn Hammer, Torque and the number of other projects on the go, I think we will see a great deal more variety available to us in the near future. So, while the new breweries in the city may not be able to list any of their packaged beers at the Liquor Marts, it will allow for them to diversify, come up with something fun and unique for the Liquor Marts and still have whatever they choose on at their taprooms.

Whether you agree with this practice or not, feel free to contact your MLA and the MBLL directly with your concerns. I’m looking forward to continuing to support the growing local craft beer industry.

When you have a thesis you are trying to write on a deadline it certainly makes the “more fun” type of writing more difficult. With that said, in 5 days I will be starting my 24-day journey through the beers and breweries of the Craft Beer Advent Calendar. This is what really got me into blogging about beer last year and was a really interesting and educational process. Take a look at my round-up from last year here.

I just had the opportunity to attend a media event for the expansion of the Growler bar program in Manitoba. Robert Holmberg, Vice President of Liquor Operations for Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries was on hand as well as Ron Lemieux, Minister Responsible for Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries.

Minister Lemieux and VP Robert Holmberg filling some howlers

They announced the first phase of a three-year plan: the expansion of the current growler bar program to four new locations as well as the introduction of the 946ml “Howler”. There will also be an expansion to 7 new beer vendors over the next 6 months bringing the total number of growler bars in the province to 18.

As well as seeing more growler bars, beers from outside the province are now being considered for the growler bar. Robert Holmberg told me they will be using their internal “craft style beer” definition as a means of determining if a brewery fits their criteria with emphasis placed on uniqueness, style and saleability. (I imagine they’ll use the same selection criteria they have for listing beers.) He also indicated it might not be the case that all liquor marts have the same beers on the growler bar, promoting variety and customer experimentation.

Robert Holmberg also said while focus will be placed on local breweries, Manitoba wants to respect free trade and make sure the process is fair for everyone. Operationally it is easier for MLL to sell local breweries as they are right here in the province and it is easier to get the beer. For beers coming from outside the province and/or country, there are a number of logistical factors that come into play. Still, if the breweries meet the “uniqueness, style, saleability” criteria, why not have more selection?

I also asked Mr. Holmberg about the expansion process and if this, being the first year of expansion, means we might eventually see growler bars in all of the Liquor Marts around the province. He told me this is not the plan, adding that growler bars usually get their start in microbreweries and this is where he thinks it will return. With a number of breweries slated to open – four by next summer (hopefully) and many more to come (last count was up to 16) – Mr. Holmberg believes people will want to get their growlers filled at the source. He said he can see the expansion going to a certain point before MLL starts looking at retraction. In the end, they will listen to what consumers say.

Here is the press release from the event, which gives a few more details. For me, the howler is a smart idea and the expansion of the growler bar program can only increase access to good beer. While I’m not completely excited with an AB in Bev beer being listed on the growler bar (Blue Point), overall things seem positive. Manitoba is far behind other provinces in the craft beer market and it is good to see we are starting to catch up.

The Manitoba Government continues to show that it has an interest in expanding the craft brewery market here in Manitoba. With places like Ontario and BC just exploding with new breweries who are not only bringing in revenue for tourism but also through sales and taxation, it’s about time for the government to push further and open up the market to allow for new entries.

As has been noted before on this blog and in conversation with David Rudge of Half Pints, the changes in laws to allow for growler bars, and hopefully soon, tap rooms, will allow for new breweries to come into the market with lower overheads and increased chance of success. With the government of Manitoba committing some of the $10,191,000 (Page 5) increase in Tourism and Culture to be put towards introducing measures to “boost Manitoba’s craft brewing industry” (Page 8), we see that they are putting sincere efforts into area of business that will hopefully bring about some changes to the way breweries currently operate.

The increase in funding, the promise to introduce new measures and the Craft Breweries Strategy all give me hope that we will see some opening up of the still very restrictive liquor laws here in Manitoba that will allow new breweries to flourish and bring to Manitoba the same sort of creativity and wealth of options that exist. Not that I don’t like Manitoban beer…I love it, I’d just like to have more!

One of the most difficult parts of brewing beer and wine, even from a kit, is having the time, space and the materials to do so. Well, those people are in luck!

The Manitoba Government has announced that the Liquor and Gaming authority will now be able to authorize businesses to allow brewing on site! What does this mean? It means that places like Brewers Direct, Grape and Grain, and Wine Sense, will be able to provide space for home brewers to mix, ferment, and bottle their kit of choice on site.

According to the Backgrounder “In-store brewing facilities provide customers with the ingredients, instructional advice, and equipment to produce wine and beer for off-site personal consumption in private locations. Customers purchase ingredients on-site, mix their wine or beer, and leave it on the premises for fermentation. After a period of time, customers return to bottle their wine or beer and remove the product from the site.”

Anyone who has ever made wine or beer, especially beer from scratch, at home knows that there is more to it than mixing, fermenting and bottling. There are steps that must be followed along the way.

It is still unclear whether the site will be responsible for racking the beer from primary to secondary fermenter, whether their will be the ability to create a beer wort from scratch on site, or if this will essentially be a full service enterprise where it really will be an “add the yeast and bottle” type process.

At present the government has indicated in their backgrounder that a number of exisiting businesses that sell kits have indicated their interest to provide this service. They have also recognized the new business potential of such an endeavour. The government has begun looking at best practices from other jurisdicitions and developing regulations and guidelines to be put in place.

The final regulations are expected to be in place by Spring of 2015 according to Minister Chomiak, at which point business will be able to apply for special authorization to allow on-site brewing. The Minister did say that the business would need to also meet “federal and municipal regulations” and that it will be based on “training and inspection“.

What is certain is that this initiative opens the doors to a variety of business models where, perhaps, some enterprising home brewer might open a place where you can, with advice and materials, create your very own beer from scratch and learn the ins and outs of full scale home brewing.